North Carolina parents plan to gather tomorrow in a show of support for the state’s popular Opportunity Scholarship Program, which helps families across North Carolina access private schools for their children.
Last year, lawmakers expanded the program to universal eligibility, making any family, regardless of income, eligible to apply on behalf of their children. So many parents rushed to apply on the first day of the priority application period that the application portal temporarily crashed. Despite this brief setback, however, more than 72,000 new applications were eventually received.
Unfortunately, because of this record-breaking demand, there was only enough funding to provide 13,511 scholarships for new students whose families are in the first award tier and about 2,300 scholarships for those in Tier 2, waitlisting nearly 55,000 students. Leaders in both the Senate and the House supported approving funding to clear the waitlist, yet disagreements over unrelated budget items caused this to hit a snag. The delay has caused logistical nightmares for parents and school leaders looking to make plans for the upcoming school year.
In response, parents will gather tomorrow to show support for the program and encourage lawmakers to approve additional funding. What follows is some basic information for anyone interested in attending the rally.
Who
Event organizers invite parents and other residents who want to demonstrate support for the program and encourage lawmakers to approve funding to give scholarships to the 55,000 students still on the waitlist.
What
Parents will gather to show support for the popular school choice program and encourage lawmakers to approve funding so that the students currently on the waitlist receive scholarships. Following the rally, parents will deliver letters to Sen. Phil Berger and Speaker Tim Moore.
Where
Parents will gather on the Halifax Mall, located at 300 N. Salisbury St. in Raleigh.
When
The rally will start at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, July 31, and last about half an hour. Attendees are urged to get there about 9:45 a.m.
Why
The Opportunity Scholarship Program continues to be popular among North Carolina families. In fact, the number of recipients has grown from 1,216 in the first year of the program to 32,547 in 2023–24. Around 72,000 new (i.e., additional) applications were received during the 2024 application period.
How
To RSVP, text 252-299-2326. Additional details, including parking information, can be found here.
For other articles covering the expansion of North Carolina’s Opportunity Scholarship Program, see the following:
